Morning Smiles

My cup runneth over with love for these two little sweethearts! Have a great day!

"No Cavities!!! Wait, What?"

awesome and huge fish tank

movie room

video game station

toddler games

Today marked a first for my Cole....his first trip to the dentist! Let me tell you, we both had a total blast! My dad is a dentist and although I grew up in a dentist office Cole had no idea what we were going to do today. I made Cole an appointment at a pediatric dental office in our area and Rhonald and I have been talking it up ever since. I was nervous that he would be afraid but as soon as we walked in I knew I had nothing to worry about. The waiting room was filled with cool things to do and things to take their minds off of being at the dentist. While we waited Cole looked at the fish, watched Scooby Doo and played video games with some bigger boys. When his name was called he was so excited!!! Miss Whitney took us back to the X ray area and was so sweet and fun that Cole jumped up and let her take X rays of his teeth with no problem. Next she polished them, flossed them and put fluoride on them. Cole was amazing. He loved that there was a sign with his name on it at his seat. The only thing that he was not too sure about was laying on the table but Miss Whitney let him sit up and play with all of her tools and warm up to the place and then he was fine. There was a TV above his chair and he got to wear headphones and watch Toy Story 3 the entire time. It was so cool! Then Dr. Jerry came over and counted Cole's teeth and talked with me about some things and still Cole watched his show. It was so cute - when Dr. Jerry told Cole that he did not have any cavities Cole was super excited and said, "No cavities! yeah! Wait, what are cavities?" After we all had a good laugh Dr. Jerry explained it to Cole and then he bragged about it to everyone! He was beyond thrilled to get a Diego toothbrush but declined the Spongebob toothpaste since he is not allowed to watch that show. That's my boy! He had such a great experience that he is already excited to go back! Thank goodness for places like that...it made both of us feel at ease.

Young Love???

We got to spend some fun time with the Stearle boys last week. While Jackson and Cole were busy playing trains, Lily Kate and Ethan were busy getting to know each other. Ethan is 8 months old and loved crawling over to Lily. She loved him just as much. It was so super cute to watch!!! I feel so blessed to have so many friends with kids that are both Cole's age and Lily"s age. It makes play dates all the more fun.

Food, Glorious Food!

We let our sweet little lady have her first taste of baby food tonight and I think it is obvious from the pictures that she loved it! We started with baby oatmeal because Cole always had a hard time with rice cereal. She was so funny. We thought it would take a long time for her to get the hang of it but she learned very quickly and ended up eating quite a bit. As you can see from her face she enjoyed every second of it. At first she did not know what to think but once she had a few practice bites she started reaching for the spoon and opening her mouth. She madea big mess of course but that is all part of the fun! Cole made the whole experience though - he was jumping up and down next to her swing chanting "go Lily go!" the entire time she ate! He was so excited for her. Before we started he told her," Lily, you are really going to like eating food. It is just as good as milk!" He loved that he got to pick out her spoon and bowl too. I was kind of dreading this milestone because it makes Lily Kate seem like such a big girl but after tonight I am excited about it. I can't wait to see what she thinks of "real" food since she enjoyed this so much. I made all of Cole's baby food and I plan to do the same with Lily. I am even excited about that. After she was done eating I let her stay in her swing and she was so totally relaxed. Rhonald and Cole were playing and watching the NCAA basketball tournament and Lily was just zoned out happy as can be. Sweet girl - she is such a joy!

8 Years

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for you, I always pray with joy." ---Philippians 1:3-4

Rhonald and I celebrated our 8 year anniversary last Tuesday. I cannot believe it has been 8 years! We had a wonderful dinner out - you know, the childless kind that lasts for 2 hours and you get to talk about grown up things and take your time. It was so much fun - we actually spent most of our dinner remembering the past 8 years. We laughed and laughed over memories that had not been thought about in a long time. It was such a great night of reconnecting. I am so blessed with such an amazing and loving husband. We have gone through a lot this year - moving, job changes, a new baby and through it all we have laughed together and grown closer to one another. It truly is an honor to be Mrs. Rhonald Searcy!

It's 5:00 Somewhere

I saw this cute idea for a post on another blog - what does your house look like at 5:00 on any given day? Well, I am usually just starting dinner about that time and I usually have my 2 helpers in the kitchen with me. Yesterday Cole was busy building towers and other things with his Lego's and Lily Kate was busy chewing on various toys. We were listening to Pandora and singing along with the songs that we knew. It was perfect! So...what happens at your house around 5:00?

Look At Him Go

Spring is here and with that comes lots and lots of outside time! Thank goodness...we have all been longing for it. Santa brought Cole a Toy Story scooter for Christmas this year and he has been very excited to get a chance to try it out. He spent much of Sunday afternoon outside riding around and enjoying the day. In true Cole fashion he was very cautious but got the hang of it rather quickly. He really loved watching his shadow as he rode around and we had to keep reminding him to pay attention to where he was going. The highlight of the day however was when the police man in our small town (I think there is one on duty at all times) drove by and sounded his siren for Cole. He thought he was really big time then! We are so thankful for this awesome weather, as I know everyone is, and we are so excited for many more fun days to play outside!

On Being Thankful

No pictures to share this time...just words....words that are dear to my heart. Being a mom of 2 little ones is tough. I honestly never thought it would be. I thought life would continue as it was and Lily Kate would just join right in and we would never notice the change. Boy, was I wrong. She is a great baby, don't get me wrong, but she is a baby and we were very used to our well behaved toddler...our normal...our routine. I have found it so hard over the past 5 months to balance everything - to clean up, to cook, to love them both fully and equally, to make time for Rhonald, to make time for myself, to find a quiet moment to spend with God....and so on. So many nights have ended in pure exhaustion and with bad feelings about not being the person I was called to be. I have been focusing a lot of my "quiet" and not so quiet time on being intentional. Some days are great - some are failures but every day I try. I try to intentionally smile and hug and love and say "way to go" at a simple task. I try to intentionally make breakfast for everyone and send them about their days full and healthy. I try to intentionally pray for peace and love to fill this home and everyone in it every day. And today, while talking with a friend, I realized that I have not been intentionally thankful. I am thankful every day and I do thank God for my family and the blessing they are but what about the every day things...they small things that make up my life? I am so thankful for them too - heck, some days I am just thankful to make it through the day. So, I am doing something new and I hope to share a lot of it with you. At the end of every day - no matter how sleepy or hungry - I will intentionally write down 10 things I am thankful for (no matter how silly or weird they may seem) until I reach 1000. I will end my day focusing on the wonderful things that I have been blessed with and I will intentionally let go of all of the burdens that I feel. I am excited to get started so...here I go...
1. dancing in the sand box with my first born as the sun went down pretending we were at the beach.
2. belly laughs and baby smiles at bath time.
3. "one more kiss and hug" to end our day right (oh I dread the day that he doesn't want a kiss or a hug from his mama).
4. contagious laughter at the dinner table.
5. freshly painted toenails to remind me that even though I am unshowered and still in my pj's I am a "girly girl" at heart.
6. my littles playing together.
7. a quick, but sweet, kiss in passing on a very busy day to remember that I am still his bride (even unshowered and in my pj's).
8. a chubby hand holding my hair tightly as my baby girl falls asleep.
9. the pink tulips that greet me as I walk down the stairs.
10. Cole singing "Jesus loves me" to "put me to sleep" during playtime.

I may not share every day, as blogging every day is basically impossible for me to do, but I do plan to share my lists when I sit down to share other things as well. It is a new beginning...a time to focus on the blessings I have so graciously been given and time to lay the burdens of every day life aside. After all....life is way too short!

Seriously?

Just seeing this picture makes me happy and it also makes me want to run up to Lily Kate's room and shower her with kisses...but I am not crazy. I may be madly in love with this beautiful baby but I know better than to wake a sleeping child. Until the morning I will just have to gaze at this sweet face on the computer ... and maybe sneak a peak in her room real quick (and quietly).

My Cookie Buddy

First off...don't you love the sweet apron and chef hat that my friend, Keisha, bought Cole for Christmas? And it is so fitting because 1.) he loves trains and 2.) he loves to help me cook. The other day while I was trudging through Walmart with both kids (something I try to avoid at all costs) Cole asked if we could make cookies. Of course! When I asked him what kind we should make I was shocked...he said "chocolate chip." Cole hates chocolate...hates it. But he insisted...and he insisted that they have nuts in them because daddy loves nuts (I believe he said Daddy loves nuts just like a squirrel) which is also funny because yes, daddy loves nuts but he also hates chocolate. I, however, love chocolate so I was all for it. Cole and I had a blast and he gets to practice counting and pouring and measuring so I feel like he is learning too. Ever since I first knew of Cole growing in my tummy I wanted to be the mom with the best cookies. I know, crazy, but you all know of a mom who always had wonderful, yummy cookies to share and I totally wanted to be her. I have tried many recipes and all were ok but these were awesome! It's too bad that no one in our house will eat them but me. :)

Best Friends

These two are inseparable...and yes, I mean Lily Kate and her Kangaroo. This was once one of Cole's toys and he liked it but sweet Lily LOVES it. She lights up when she sees this toy. Even Cole has figured out that if you give her the Kangaroo when she is upset she will calm right down. Lily chomps on it, hugs it, slobbers on it....she adores it. I love watching her roll around all over the floor while keeping a hold of her sweet friend. It is the sweetest and silliest thing ever!

Making His Mark

We had a new patio poured today. The crew came last Friday to set up for it and ever since Cole has been talking about putting his hand print in the concrete. He watched from the window all morning while the guys leveled and poured and washed and finally...there was a knock on the window and a hand waving us outside. It was time! Cole was so thrilled to be able to put his mark on our home. And honestly the little hand print makes this house feel a little more like home.

Lily Kate at 5 Months

Dear Lily Kate,

Oh sweet Lily Kate - there are no words to truly describe how much I love you. You have a smile that lights up every room. You love to cuddle and be sung/talked to. You are fairly independent but love to have mommy or daddy within your site. Already I can see that you love people and you also love to be the center of attention. You love your routine and thrive on that. The sweetest thing you do, in my opinion, is that you always touch my face when you are sleepy. It melts my heart. We can always hear you talking when you wake up and when I walk in your room you are so honestly joyful to see me - it makes my day every time! This month you have turned into quite a rolly polly. You roll from your tummy to your back and from your back to your tummy so well and so quickly that we can hardly keep up with you. You have had many nights this month where you have slept for 12 hours and that makes me so happy! You are eating formula now. Your poor tummy hit an all time high in the trouble department and I really did not feel I had any choice but to wean you. I am so glad that I did because you have been so much happier and healthier since we made the switch. You are even sleeping 12 hours straight some nights which is amazing! You continue to have trouble with reflux at times but it is so much better and your tummy pains and problems seem to be all gone. Lily, we love you so very much. I am so excited to watch you continue to grow and learn. You are such a joy to be with and I am so thankful to be your mommy!